Atlantic Singles Labels
0B
AT48
The first Atlantic single was “Sa-Frantic” by The Poll Cats (Atlantic 851). Its
advance release was announced in the February 7, 1948, issue of Billboard.
The label was red with a large “A” at the left and the rest of “Atlantic”
across the top – leaving space at the bottom right for all of the artist
information. Above the spindle hole are the words “Made in U.S.A. Atlantic
Recording Corp., New York, N.Y.”
At first, Atlantic pressed only R&B releases, but
in August, 1949, they added Country and
Western singles (on a yellow label) to their
catalog.
AT48a
At the start of 1950, Atlantic removed the
manufacturing statement from the label. At
this point in time they were still releasing
only 78 RPM singles. That changed in late January, 1951, when they
contracted out for two of their hit records (numbered 914 and 919) to be
pressed in the 45 RPM format. These were successful, and by the last week in
March they announced plans to release all of their singles in both formats.
Although the 78’s were on a red label, their 45 RPM counterparts were on a
yellow label until the beginning of 1956.
AT48r
In January, 1956, at approximately number 1085, Atlantic changed all of their
mainline 45’s to a red label. In November, 1961, a registered trademark ®
symbol was added under the “A” in “Atlantic.”
AT48s
Starting in March, 1962, a small swirl logo was added underneath the “A”
in “Atlantic.”
AT48x
At the end of 1966, Atlantic promotional labels added an address
statement to the bottom, creating rim text for the first time. As each
pressing plant ran out of old labels, they introduced new labels with
the address at the bottom. By the middle of 1967 virtually all Atlantic
singles had this print, which begins with “Atlantic Record Sales” on
some copies and with “Distributed by Atlantic Record Sales” on other
copies. This is a factory distinction.
AT68
The rim text needed to be standardized. In September, 1968, the
definitive print was determined. From this point on the rim text reads
“Mfg. by Atlantic Recording Corp., 1841 Broadway, New York, N.Y.”
AT74
June, 1974, marked another transition for Atlantic singles. The rim text
was changed to represent a new location on Rockefeller Plaza. Abba’s
“Waterloo” (45-3035) came out just before the change and occurs on
both this label and AT68.
AT75
Atlantic’s affiliation with Warner Communications resulted in the
addition of the Warner “W” logo in the rim print. This began in
March, 1975. With single #3386, the 45- prefix was removed from
all singles. After all, there hadn’t been 78 RPM singles for many years. Beginning in July, 1982, all
new Atlantic singles had five digit catalog numbers, as Atlantic jumped from 4072 to 7-89999 and
began counting backward from 90000…approximately.
AT75r
From August, 1985 on, there is a registered trade mark symbol ® next to the
Warner Communications logo in the rim print. In May, 1987, Atlantic started
adding UPC (bar) codes to its singles labels.
AT90
At the end of the period where the 45 RPM single was in regular
production, in January, 1990, Atlantic changed the label color to
lavender. Since 2004 they have issued only custom pressings.
Atlantic Album Labels
1B
Being a relatively new label, Atlantic had no immediate plans to enter the LP market.
However, the radio program, “This is My Beloved,” taken from a best-selling book of
love poems, was proving to be so popular that Atlantic Records snapped up the rights
to release it on record. On March 19, 1949, Atlantic announced that the album would
be available by April 15th and that it could be purchased in both the 78 RPM and LP
formats.
Atlantic numbered the 78 RPM boxed set as 1201, 1202, and 1203 – because each of the three 78
singles was a twelve-inch single. To the LP they assigned the number 110, because it was a single teninch disc.
AT49
That first LP appeared on a gray label with red print. “Long Playing” is above
the central white circle, while “Micro-groove Record” is below it.
Atlantic’s second LP, Joe Bushkin’s I Love a Piano, was released in mid-May,
1950, on the same label. It was assigned number LP-108. The album Erroll
Garner Rhapsody (LP-109 on the label and No. 109 on the cover) was
released the same week and may exist on a gray label but is only known on a
yellow label with similar typesetting.
LP-108 first appeared with “108” stamped on the cover.” Then it was issued
on the same label with “LP No. 108” in the lower left corner. It was later
reissued with yellow label AT50 and catalog number ALR-108. LP-109 was
reissued with a yellow label and then a black label AT50 and catalog number ALR-109.
The only other record known to have been released on the gray label was ATL-401 (Romeo and Juliet)
from January, 1951.
AT51
The next album (LP-111) was about to be released
in April, 1951, according to Billboard (3/31/51),
and then on June 23, 1951, Atlantic announced
the impending release of thirty (30) LP’s. In July,
they formally listed LP’s 111 through 129 (minus a
few) – coming on September 1st. When these came out they were on a
yellow label with black print.
At the bottom of the label was the speed with “Long Playing” and
“Unbreakable.” At first these were released with LP- prefixes.
That listing was somewhat misleading. Some of the LP’s named there wound up never coming out.
The following ten-inch LP’s were released between 1951 to 1953:
Album Number
LP-111
LP-112
LP-113
First Mention in Billboard
March 31, 1951 (advance for April)
LP-114
ALR-117
LP-120/ALS-120
March 8, 1952 (p. 38, “advance”)
February 21, 1953 (“Hot Jazz” review)
LP on cover, ALS- on record
ALS-118
LP-130
LP-133
LP-132
LP-134
ALS-137
ALS-123
LP/ALR-126
ALR-125
ALR-128
ALS-139
ALR-140
ALR-135
ALR-138
ALS-141
ALR-142
ALR-144
ALS-143
March 8, 1952 (p. 38, “advance”)
Notes
1951-52
Title given on 7/14/51 as Piano Pastels
instead of Piano Panorama.
both reviewed 3/29/52
LP’s through 133 on back cover released
1952 (mentioned 8/29/53)
LP’s through 133 on back cover (1952)
This LP and 133 are newest on back (1952?)
mentioned 8/29/53
same back cover as 130 (reissued ALS)
recorded in late 1951 and issued in 1952-3 (back cover has 133 in LR)
mentioned 8/29/53 (LP on front; ALS- on back)
reviewed October 4, 1952 (LP-137); mentioned 8/29/53; ALS- matrix
scarce; mid 1953
mentioned 8/29/53
January 23, 1954
Review score (ALR in matrix)
recorded in 1953
probably released mid-1953
mentioned 8/29/53
LP’s through 133 on back (1953)
reviewed 5/16/53; mentioned 8/29/53
reviewed 5/15/53; mentioned 8/29/53
mentioned 8/29/53
mentioned 8/29/53
mentioned 8/29/53
No later than November, 1952
mentioned 8/29/53
mentioned 8/29/53
issued after 8/29/53
The following LP’s are not known to exist and are not mentioned on the list of 8/29/53 as having been
issued:
LP-115
not known to exist
LP-116
not known to exist
LP-119
not known to exist
LP-121
LP-122
LP-127
LP-129
LP-131
LP-136
not known to exist
not known to exist
not known to exist
not known to exist; sides purchased from Blue Star in 1948
not known to exist
not known to exist
The listings create confusion with respect to Atlantic’s 10” LP’s. The company released their first twelveinch LP in January, 1951. That album was a performance of Romeo and Juliet by Eva LeGallienne, Dennis
King, and Richard Waring in what Atlantic termed “The Living Shakespeare Series.” This was a boxed set
of two LP’s numbered ATL-401 together, and numbered LP-1204 and LP-1205 separately. This set came
out on the gray label AT49.
All other early twelve-inch LP’s are known on
the yellow label AT51.
Album Number
First Mention in Billboard
Notes
LP-1206
Back cover lists LP’s up through 133 (mid-52)
LP-1207
April 12, 1952 (“just completed”)
Fall ’52?
BIN-1208
November 8, 1952
Binaural version of ALS-141
ALS-1209
1953
1210
Reviewed 1/23/54
1211
Reviewed 1/23/54
Atlantic 1210 and 1211 are reissues of Desto D-1001 and D-1002, which were originally released in July,
1952. These were reviewed at the same time Atlantic announced having released albums ALS-409
(formerly Desto D-501) and ALS-410 (formerly Desto D-502). That label had gone out of business, and
Atlantic had licensed records from its catalog.
Based on this information, Atlantic probably stopped using the LP- prefix at the end of 1952. Albums
released after that time have an ALR- ($3 price) or ALS- ($3.85) prefix normally.
AT55
Atlantic cleaned up their catalog in 1955.
Most of the ten-inch LP’s seem to have
been deleted by then, and no new ones
were being issued. The twelve-inch albums
continued in the 1200 series, but the ALRand ALS- prefixes were dropped – leaving
just the sequence number. The label was changed to black with silver print, and “HIGH FIDELITY” was
added at the right side.
These began with album 1212, which is advertised in the April 23, 1955, issue of Billboard. When the
8000 series began (4/20/57), it used the same black label as the 1200 series.
The binaural album aside, the first reference to Atlantic Records getting involved in the stereo album
market came early – in May, 1958. The label issued three albums in stereo: SD 1253, SD 1276, and SD
1284. Several others followed, and it was not long before Atlantic was pressing most of its new albums
in both mono and stereo.
At first, stereo albums were indicated by a sticker on the front cover. Within a few months in 1958, this
was changed to an embossed gold stamping onto a mono album cover. The stereo labels were light
green, otherwise resembling their mono counterparts. This label as it is lasted until the second week of
October, 1959.
AT59
Without any advance notice of a change, Atlantic introduced a “pinwheel”
design with their swirl logo at the center. This label design has confused
collectors because it lasted only a month – until approximately the second
week in November, 1959. Album 1318 in the 1200 series and album 8036 in
the 8000 series are the highest-numbered albums known with this label style.
AT55a
As suddenly as it had appeared, the pinwheel label style disappeared, and the
black label returned. This time the words “High Fidelity” were placed at the
left side. The black label (green for stereo)
remained this time until the end of June,
1960.
AT60
Beginning in July, 1960, Atlantic introduced
an entirely new – and popular – design: a
tricolor label with red and plum (mono) or
green and blue. This first label featured the
pinwheel label in white on a black
background and had a (white) vertical
segment between “A” and the pinwheel. By
about album 1374 (February, 1962), the
trademark on the pinwheel logo had come
back, and the ® symbol was added above
the pinwheel. However, the symbol did not
look like it belonged on the label, and so the label was redesigned.
AT62
Beginning in November, 1962 (and
about LP 1391), the labels have the
pinwheel in black on white, and the
word “Atlantic” between the “A” on
the label and the pinwheel.
AT66
Beginning at about album 1474, Atlantic defined for
itself a more recognizable logo with this issue. They
put “A” and the pinwheel in a box, and placed
“ATLANTIC” beneath it, horizontally. While the label
style would last only two more years, the company
kept the logotype in use. Parallel to the addition of
rim text crediting Atlantic Record Sales on 45 RPM
singles, labels in use by Monarch Records (which had
been pressing for Atlantic since November, 1964)
added similar rim text. The other factories did not add the language. The last
albums in both mono and stereo, approximately numbers 8178 and 1500, came immediately before the
label style was discontinued. The last known records to bear the label style were from June, 1968:
approximately numbers 8198 and 1508.
AA66r
I have written AA instead of AT because this
label style was used on both Atlantic and Atco
labels. It features the Atco colors, lavender and
brown. Instead of appearing in white, STEREO
appears in black. For Atlantic releases, the
Atlantic logo appears in its 1962-1966
configuration with “Atlantic” wedged between
“A” and the pinwheel.
On some releases the label reads “PR” for
Presswell because it was copied off of a label
from the Presswell plant.
These records have the telltale “I” of the RCA
Indianapolis factory.
The matrix numbers end in RCA stamper
numbers (-2S, -3S, -4S), also indicating their
manufacture by RCA. The altered label design
allowed RCA to overprint either Atlantic or Atco
information in black against the white
background.
As indicated in Billboard (12/31/66), by May of
that year Atlantic/Atco signed a deal to
distribute through the RCA Victor Record Club.
RCA pressed one Atlantic/Atco sampler
containing songs from the label’s recent history.
This was probably a club exclusive, since the
catalog numbers appear on the back cover in a
style similar to what appears on RCA Victor
albums from 1966, and since all copies of the LP
(in mono and stereo) are on label AA66r. We
may conclude that this sampler was Atlantic’s
introduction to the record club.
Hypothetically, Atlantic/Atco joined the club in spring, 1966, and used up their existing back-stock of
albums. From that point on (fall, 1966), they supplied RCA Victor’s pressing plant in Indianapolis with
some label blanks in Atco colors that did not have any identifiers; alternatively, they merely indicated to
RCA what the color scheme ought to be. From that point until early 1969, the record club could print up
labels for club copies of Atlantic and Atco albums as they saw the need.
Albums known to exist with this label are…
8000 Series
SD-8125; SD-2129; SD-8134; SD-8135; SD-8138; SD-8139; SD-8142; SD-8145; SD-8148; SD-8154;
SD-8155; SD-8169; SD-8170; SD-8174; SD-8175; SD-8177; SD-8187; SD -8197; SD-8202; SD-8203;
SD-8204; SD-8205; SD-8207; SD-8213; SD-8214; SD-8215; SD-8216
1200 Series
SD-1464
SD-1495
Atco Albums
ST-7001
SD 33-190; SD 33-197; SD 33-203; SD 33-208; SD 33-219; SD 33-265; SD 33-278; SD 33-280; SD 33-281
The label appears on RCA-made LP’s made from fall, 1966, to February, 1969. These were releases
through the RCA Record Club that were made prior to their distinct numbering system.
AT68
Apparently coinciding with the phase out of the mono/stereo
option, Atlantic changed the label style for all of its albums. The
label is green on top and red on the bottom, with rim print
indicating Atlantic Recording Corp as the manufacturer, and giving
the address at 1841 Broadway.
A new series debuted in April, 1970, with SD-7200, and the 8000
series was discontinued in August, 1973, with the quad release QD
8305.
AT68p
The zip code was added to the company sleeve for singles in November,
1971, and to album labels that were released between November, 1971,
and February-March, 1972. The state of “New York” was also spelled out.
So far I have only seen the variation on LP’s pressed by Philips. Hypothesis:
Atlantic was planning to add the zip code to its label blanks, but most
factories still had plenty of unused label blanks. Philips had a few copies
printed, but after that Atlantic decided not to bother with the change.
AT74
June, 1974, marked another transition for Atlantic albums. The rim text
was changed to represent a new location on Rockefeller Plaza. Graham
Nash’s Wild Tales may have been one of the first albums after the
change. In August/September (’74), the 7200 series was terminated
with number 7311; replacing it was a series starting with 18100. Welcome to My Nightmare, by
Alice Cooper (SD-18130) was one of the last albums on this label style.
AT75
Atlantic’s affiliation with Warner Communications resulted in the
addition of the Warner “W” logo in the rim print. This began in
March, 1975. Atlantic soon initiated a new 19100 series and a
16000 series. Beginning in July, 1982, all new Atlantic albums had five digit catalog numbers, as
Atlantic jumped from SD 19365 to 80001-1. Although custom and “retro” labels were used by some
artists, this was Atlantic’s main label through 1990 and the end of the vinyl period.
This article © 2016 Frank Daniels.